April 22-28 is Bed Bug Awareness Week

FAIRFAX, VA – As the professional pest management industry wraps up its celebration of National Pest Management Month this month the Professional Pest Management Alliance (PPMA) is marking the last week of April as Bed Bug Awareness Week.  PPMA, which serves as the public outreach arm of the National Pest Management Association (NPMA), is conducting a campaign through social and traditional media to remind the public about the dangers of bed bugs in advance of the summer travel season.

“Our industry is keenly aware of the fact that bed bugs are a significant pest problem in the United States,” said Missy Henriksen, executive director or PPMA. “With bed bug infestations becoming increasingly common, it’s important to encourage public vigilance and awareness of these pests, and to remind them of the ease with which bed bugs can be picked up while on vacation or traveling.”

PPMA is hoping pest control companies join them in its message by reminding current and potential customers that bed bugs are still a problem, despite the fact they are no longer on the front pages of newspapers. Companies can issue press releases, talk about it on their Facebook brand pages and Twitter feeds and encourage technicians to discuss bed bugs with their customers.

“PPMA will be issuing a series of tweets throughout the week offering bed bug facts and tips using a the dedicated hashtags, #bedbugs and #bedbugweek. We hope companies will join us and use the hashtag during their own Twitter outreach,” suggested Henriksen.

PPMA has also developed a Bed Bug Awareness toolkit, which contains a press release template, bed bug media talking points, pest guide, and key bed bug stats and photos for PPMA Guardians and Contributors to use in their company outreach. The toolkit can be downloaded from PPMATools.org, the group’s exclusive marketing hub for investors.

For more information about PPMA and its marketing programs, please visit NPMApestworld.org/PPMA.